1838 L KIMBALL MARSEILLES IL TO COMMISSIONERS ILLINOIS-MICHIGAN CANAL STMPLS LTR

Description

Up for auction is a vintage folded stampless letter and cover combination that was mailed from Marseilles, Illinois nd addressed to the Commissioners of the Illinois-Michigan Canal, Juliet??, Illinois.  1838 dated letter was from L. Kimball. Agent, who was also the town's Post Master...  Paper is legal size, so two scans were needed for the first page.  Paper has multiple tears and PAPER NEEDS TO BE HANDLED VERY CAREFULLY TO PREVENT FURTHER DAMAGE.  paper has areas of heavy staining...Letter was transcribed by jkpaper27305 and reads as follows:
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Commissioners of Michigan & Illinois Canal
Gentlemen,
By an unexpected and unusual freshet in the last of August, we lost a part of our dam by its being open and exposed. We have expended about ,000 dollars on our dam and mills. We have had our mills broken to pieces once by ice and have lost a part of our dam twice by having high water come upon it in an unfinished state. In short, we have had all sorts of hard luck. We are extremely anxious to get the dam replaced at the earliest possible moment. We have no timber of our own near or that we can get without a great deal of labor & expense, and we ask of the State to give us timber for the dam. It will certainly be greatly to the interest of the State to have these mills in operation. The impossibility of getting lumber at a price that can be paid along through this part of the line will most certainly and undoubtedly make a difference with contractors in the price of work, and there is, nor can not be any mills in this section of country that could furnish the Canal with lumber for trunks to aqueducts &c &c as conveniently as we could. I would cite for example the contractors next below and they say their shanty cost them six to seven hundred dollars, whereas if lumber could have been got at hand it would not have cost to exceed one half. It appears to me it will be entirely to the interest of the State to have these mills in operation as early as possible and, if so, to give the lumber for the dam. The terrible difficulties & monstrous expense of doing this kind of business in this country is well known to you. The magnitude of this work and the constant succession of high water for the last fifteen months, added to the great difficulty of obtaining the necessary quality & quantity of labor to get work done in time to save it is truly discouraging, and some of the owners are ready to abandon the work altogether. I wish you to weigh this subject and do something for us if in your judgment you can do so, and at the same time protect the interest of the State. There is an Island in Section 7 in Township 33 North, Range 7 East which would be very convenient. Please advise by mail as early as convenient.
Yours Truly,
L. Kimball, Agent
Marseilles, Jan'y 6th 1838
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.. .paper has edge/corner wear, age staining and has yellowed/toned from time...
.25 covers shipping in the USA. Item will be shipped in a rigid cardboard photo mailer or bubble envelope, unless otherwise noted or requested..  .00 covers shipping outside the USA  ….. International shipping will be in a standard envelope via International First
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